More Than The Summer
by Camouflage
Summary: Tegan's world changes drastically when Jacob Black shows up in Yosemite. She learns about the werewolves of Yosemite, and the huge role they played in her life even before she knew they existed. Formerly called "This Summer" JacobxOC
1. Jacob Black

Chapter One

I live for summer. Everything about it is just so absolutely perfect. There are no classes, no homework assignments, no schedules … it's the perfect thing for me. I'm one of the most laid back people you will ever meet, which leads to some trouble during the other three seasons. But summer … summer is mine. At least it used to be.

_This_ summer, there is a little black cloud hovering over what would be otherwise perfect weather. A summer job. Let me just say this: when you live in Yosemite, California, one of the most beautiful places in the United States, the last thing you want to do is spend your perfect summer days inside. But, I'm sixteen, now, and old enough to work part time, so my father made me do so.

Luckily for me, my mother was part of the Awahnee tribe, which is the tribe that resides in Yosemite Valley. That means that I have some connections. I was not about to end up working at some fast food joint or restaurant. The sweaty look is not for me. No, I was going to be working in the park, at a gift shop that sells Awahnee Tribe Souvenirs. My father's ecstatic about this. Let me explain. He's a park ranger, which means he works in the park also. So, now he gets to check up on me all day.

I really hope that doesn't happen. It's my first day, so we'll see.

"How are you getting to work, Tegan?" My dad asks me as I walk into the kitchen. There's no uniform, so I've got on my favorite pair of jeans and an orange tank-top, which looks excellent against my slightly tanned skin. I silently thank my dead mother for her excellent genes, because I definitely didn't get my looks from my dad. He's Irish and he looks it, with copper hair, pale skin, and freckles. You would not be able to tell that we're related, because my skin's the color of milky coffee. Though, my dark brown hair does have a _slight _red tint to it.

"Gavin," I answer, knowing that it would make my father cringe. He doesn't like Gavin very much. He is one of the Awahnee boys, but that isn't the whole reason. The Awahnee boys are slightly troublesome. They never do anything really bad; mostly they just play tricks on the tourists, but it's a pain for my father, being that he is a park ranger and called to deal with whatever happens.

"No one else can give you a ride?" He asks.

"Well, I _could_ drive myself if you bought me a car," I remind him. He just grunts. I got my license last month on my birthday, but I don't have a car, yet. It seemed like I was going to pay for my own car. Until then, I'm more than happy to hitch a ride with Gavin. He has a nice car, his parents are pretty wealthy and bought him a BMW, the lucky bastard.

Then there's the sound of a car horn outside. Gavin.

"That's him," I say as I bend over and kiss my father on the cheek. "I get off at three, and Gavin is going to pick me up and bring me home."

"You'd better come straight home," my dad calls after me as I head for the front door. That means he doesn't want me hanging out with Gavin. I don't answer, because it's more than likely that I will do something with Gavin after work.

As I walk out of my house and set eyes on him, my breath catches in my throat, just like it does every time I see him. He really is gorgeous. One hundred percent Awahnee, he has the razor-sharp cheekbones and long straight nose characteristic of the tribe. His medium-length, dark hair looks like it has been professionally styled, but that's just how it looks all the time.

He's perfect. And my best friend. Believe me, it's awful.

"Hey, beautiful," he greets as I get into his white BMW 6 series coup. "Excited for your first day of work?"

"I can hardly contain myself," I answer sarcastically as I buckle up. Driving with Gavin is a little scary. He likes to go fast.

"You know, you're working with Jenna," he informs me, and I have to fight to keep my features under control. Jenna is Gavin's girlfriend this week. And I hate her. She's one of the most popular senior girls. Being that I am only a junior, or was only a junior, I keep forgetting that I am a senior, now, I cannot compete. Gavin is a senior also, which really sucks. Luckily, he's not going too far away for college, I don't know what I would do without him.

"Oh! I'm so excited!" I exclaim in an obnoxious, ditzy-sounding voice. Gavin gets the joke and laughs. He knows that Jenna is not the sharpest tool in the shed. "I'll probably spend the entire day fixing her mistakes."

"Yeah, you should probably keep her away from the register," Gavin states. He looks sideways at me and flashes a brilliant smile. I look away to keep myself from jumping on him.

"This is going to be a blast."

Let me tell you something about working in a gift shop. It's boring as hell. And, when you're working with the most idiotic person on the planet, it's even worse.

No hot boys come into gift shops. It's all old women. They buy blankets and ugly shirts that I wouldn't be caught dead wearing. And when they come to pay for it, they ask me why I'm not wearing something similar. I am Native American, after all. I have to be polite rather than tell them that none of the Native Americans I know would ever wear this crap.

About an hour before it was time to quit, Gavin walked into the store, which sent Jenna into a fit of hysteric giggling and hair-flicking. I'm surprised she hasn't broken her neck.

"And how are my favorite girls?" Gavin asks as he kisses Jenna on the cheek.

"Fine," Jenna answered, "bored out of our minds, though." Another flick of her long black hair. "We're stuck here for another hour."

"Well, luckily I am here to cure the boredom," Gavin answers. Jenna giggles some more.

"I have such a wonderful boyfriend," she states. I roll my eyes.

"And how's your first day, Teag?" Gavin asks as he walks over to where I am behind the register.

"Painfully easy," I answer. I think he picks up that the painful is referring to his ridiculous girlfriend. That's when the bell on the door rings. Jenna, being the excellent customer service representative ever, completely ignores it and focuses her attention on Gavin. I am the only one who looks towards the door, and man am I glad.

Through the door walks one of the most attractive people I have ever seen. I can see that he's Native American, but he's not from around here. The Awahnee have more of a golden tan color to their skin, but this guy's was more like copper. And he is tall. Just as tall as Gavin, which is saying something, because Gavin is 6'4". I slip from behind the counter and walk up to him.

"Welcome, how can I help you?" I ask. He looks down at me silently for a minute, and then his eyes widen, as if he has suddenly recognized something.

"Uhmmm …" he begins, "I just got here."

"Well, I can see that," I answer.

"I mean, I just came to town and I …. uh …" he continued to flounder as I felt Gavin come up to stand behind me.

"Maybe you should just turn right back around and _leave_ town," Gavin suggests. This surprises me, Gavin's normally very friendly and charming. Right then I turn to look at his face to see that he's staring the new guy down, and as I look back at the new guy, I can see that his expression matches Gavin's. "I mean it, get out of here. Don't come back."

"Gavin!" I exclaim.

"Quiet, Tegan," he hushes me.

"Tegan," the stranger repeats. "Nice name." Gavin winces as if he realizes he just made a huge mistake.

"Yeah, Tegan," I confirm. "And I'm sorry about him, he's not normally like this."

"Understandable," says the stranger, "if I had a pretty girlfriend like you, I would be just as protective." Gavin slips his hand around my waist, which makes me scream inside, but that doesn't stop me from saying that he's not my boyfriend.

"Yet," Gavin says protectively. I shrug out of Gavin's grip and hold out my hand. The stranger smiles and extends his as well. When he touches me, it feels like my hand is suddenly on fire. His skin is warm, but I'm pretty sure that's not the reason for this phenomenon, because soon my whole body is tingling.

"I'm Jacob," he says to me. "Jacob Black."


	2. You Can Bet I'll Find Out

Chapter Two

"Great, Jacob Black, though it's been wonderful to meet you, I think it's time you left," Gavin continues to push, making me suspicious. I mean, he had already pretended to be my boyfriend, which I'm sure if going to piss Jenna off, but now he's being super pushy, which is not Gavin. At all. One of the reasons we're such good friends is that we're both so laid back. We go with the flow, we don't let anything bother us.

Except for Jacob Black, I guess.

"Fine," Jacob gives in. He's lost this contest, but something tells me that he's really not all that bothered by it. "It was nice meeting you, Tegan." And he doesn't say 'see you around' but I can feel it in the way he looks at me before he turns on his heel and walks out of the shop.

"Hm, he didn't buy anything," Gavin observes as he heads back towards the counter towards a fuming Jenna.

"What the hell was _that_ about!?" I demand as I follow him, close on his heels.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he responds as he grabs the log book and opens up to my page. He signs me out. "You don't mind if I take Tegan home a little early, do you, Jen?" He asks. Apparently the question was rhetorical because he doesn't wait for an answer. "You won't tell, right? Good." He kisses her briefly and then turns quickly, grabs me by the wrist and heads for the door.

"What are you doing?!" I demand. "Let go of me! Gavin!"

"I'm taking you home," Gavin states, "I'm sure your father will be very happy about that."

"I'm not going anywhere until you tell me what the hell is going on," I assure him. This is only a bluff. He can make me do anything, simply because of his physical advantage.

"I'd love to explain, Teag," he states as he uses his keyless entry to unlock the doors of the Beemer. "But … I just can't right now, OK?" We opens the driver side door and folds himself into the car. However, I just stand outside, trying really hard to stick to my guns.

"Why can't you explain?" I ask through the open window.

"If you get in the car and let me take you home, I will explain as best I can later, all right?" He sounds frustrated, but underneath the frustration there is something else. It sounds like anxiety, and now I'm really scared. Gavin is always so sure about everything, like he always knows exactly what is going to happen. But he seems so unsure and it scares me, so I sigh and get in the car. "Thank you, Teag."

"So, what was with telling Jacob that you're my boyfriend?" I ask the second question that is on my mind.

"To discourage him," he answers, "though it didn't work. You need to learn to trust my judgment, Teag. I do everything I do for a reason."

"Discourage him from what, exactly?" I persevere.

"Look, that will all be in my explanation later, all right?" Gavin snaps as he picks up speed. He knows none of the cops will pull him over because most of them are Awahnee and know his car. The drive from the gift shop to my house normally takes about fifteen minutes.

Today it took nine.

Instead of just letting me out of the car to let myself into the house, he turns off the engine to come inside with me.

"What are you doing, now?" I demand.

"Making sure that your house is secure. I can't stay here with you," he states.

"All right, Gav, you're scaring me now," I tell him.

"I don't think you're in any danger," he assures me, "I just don't want to take any chances."

"Do you think Jacob is going to try and break in or something?" I ask. Gavin doesn't answer as I unlock the front door and he walks in. He checks all the windows on the first story to make sure they're locked, and then he goes to the back door to check that. After he is satisfied with the first story, he moves onto the second, going into my room and my dad's room and the bathroom.

"No, I don't think he'll break in," he answers, "but I wouldn't put it past him to come in through something that's open."

"Do you know him or something?" I ask.

"No," he answers. "Look, Teag, save all questions for later. I will answer anything you want me to, I just don't have time right now, all right? I need to go. Stay here until I come back. Please?" He sounds so desperate that I can't do anything but say that I'll stay in the house. "Thank you so much." He grabs me by the sides of my head and kisses my forehead. "I'll be back as soon as I can."

And then he's gone.

"I swear, I could kill him," I mutter to myself as I head downstairs into the kitchen. Being that I only had a granola bar for breakfast and a few of Jenna's potato chips for lunch, I'm completely starving. I slap some peanut butter on some nutritious white bread and bring it into the living room to plop down in front of the television. I don't turn it on, though, I have way too much think about.

I run my conversation with Jacob Black through my head over and over, trying to find signs, reasons for Gavin's strange behavior, but I've got nothing. He didn't seem dangerous. He seemed rather lost, like he had no idea what he was doing until he saw me.

I'm not going to lie, I liked it. And then when he touched me my whole body felt like it was the gas and Jacob Black was the lit match. Being around him made me feel suddenly aware of myself in a way that I never had been before. And I was aware of him, too, as if he was the only thing in the world for that moment.

It was like the way I feel when I'm around Gavin, only a little more intense. I'm used to feeling that way around Gavin by now. I've known him since I was a freshman in high school, making him a sophomore. I suppose it's just normal infatuation. The same thing with Jacob Black.

I mean, the kid is gorgeous. Though I might be wrong in calling him a kid. He seemed to be at least eighteen. I have absolutely no trouble bringing his picture back to my mind. The eyes come first. They seemed kind enough, but at the same time there was something angry in them, as if he had been screwed over and hadn't quite gotten over it yet. The rest of his face follows; the high cheekbones, the short dark hair, the mouth that was slightly wider than it needed to be, making his smile quite stunning.

His clothes seemed a little haggard, as if he had been traveling, but that was obvious. He did say that he had just gotten into town.

It takes me a moment to figure out that I am not imagining Jacob Black, but staring at him through my living room window. It's a little creepy, but surprisingly, I'm not scared.

He smiles when he sees that I have noticed him, and then walks up the sidewalk to my front door. Then I hear the knock, and without even thinking, I get up to let him in. It just seems like the right thing to do. This boy is not going to cause me any harm, I can just feel it.

"Did you follow us home or something?" I ask as I look around the street for a strange car, but don't see anything.

"Uhm … something like that," Jacob answers as he shoves his hands in his pockets and rocks back on his heels.

"Would you like to come inside?" I ask as I move aside to let him pass, but he doesn't move.

"I don't think your friend would like that," he states. "Gavin, right? Yeah, I got the impression that he didn't want me to be around you."

"Yeah, I have no idea what that was about, I'm really sorry about that," I say. "But you don't have to worry about him, this is my house. Well, my home. I don't own it, my father does."

"And how would he feel about a strange boy coming into his house?" Jacob asks.

"You know, you're right, he probably wouldn't like it," I agreed. My curiosity will not allow me to just shut my front door in this boy's face, though. "I guess I'll just come outside, then." I make sure the door is not locked and close it behind me, and then I go and sit on my front lawn. "Sit down." I pat a patch of grass. Jacob smiles that same smile that I remembered so vividly as he sits down next to me.

"So, it seemed like I had your boyfriend in a bit of a-"

"He's gone crazy," I cut Jacob off, "I really don't know what's up. He's _never_ like that. And he's also _never_ been my boyfriend."

"Does he have a lot of friends?" Jacob asks. This seems like a strange question, but I answer it anyway.

"Tons, he's pretty popular," I answer. Jacob just nods.

"In that case, I really can't stay that long," he says to me. "Are you working at that gift shop tomorrow?"

"No," I answer, "I'll be working there every other day."

"So tomorrow you're free all day?" He asks.

"Basically," I answer. "So, where are you staying?"

"I don't know yet," he answers. "I might just pull up a camping spot in the park."

"You have a tent?" I ask. "So you came here to go camping?"

"Not really," he answers, "I wasn't really quite sure what I was doing when I showed up here, but I think I might stick around for a while to find out." Suddenly he stiffens and stands up. "But not right here. I'll come see you again, all right? Maybe later. Can you tell me which of those windows is yours?"

"Uhm … sure?" I reply. I point up to my bedroom window and say, "It's the one all the way on the right." I barely have time to squeeze it out before he strides away urgently, though.

I'm so confused. I really need to know what's going on.

I walk back inside as I wonder what the hell is wrong with all the boys in the planet. And why did Jacob Black show up at my house just to leave about thirty seconds later? And why did I feel so comfortable pointing out my bedroom window to him?

Well, you can bet that I'm going to ask Gavin as soon as he gets back here.


	3. Tell Me Everything

Chapter Three

I don't have to wait very long either. As soon as I close my front door, I can hear the back door burst open. And I mean it literally bursts. Like, it sounds like a bomb going off. Naturally, I'm afraid to go back there, now. I'm not stupid like those people in scary movies. I'm not going to go _towards_ the invaders. I get out of the house. As I slowly back out, I walk into Gavin's chest.

"I thought I told you not to leave," he says.

"Someone just broke in through the back door," I inform him in a whisper.

"Do you think it's Jacob?" He asks, but it seems like he already knows the answer. He slips one hand around my waist as we walk back inside.

"No," I reply.

"That's because he was already here and left," says Gavin. It's not even a question. He knows. "Did he come inside?" I don't answer. "Don't lie to me, Tegan."

Gosh, he most be serious. He never calls me Tegan. It's always Teag.

"He didn't come inside. I invited him in-" There's a sharp intake of breath from Gavin, "-but he said no. He didn't think you or my father would like that. He was very respectful."

"Luckily for him," Gavin growls. I hear someone else come in through the front door and look over my shoulder to see one of Gavin's friends, Linden. "Did you see him?"

"No, he's gone," Linden answers, running one hand over his very short black hair like he always does when he's frustrated. "I'm pretty sure he's by himself, though. If his pack were here we would know it."

"Linden!" Gavin says warningly.

"Pack? What the hell is up with you guys?" I demand as I wrench myself away from Gavin, as much as I like having his arms around me. "You will all stop this right this instant and explain to me what is going on RIGHT NOW!"

I know how to put my foot down when things have gone too far. That was when two more of Gavin's friends, Isaac and Isaiah, the twins, came into the living room from the kitchen. They must have been the ones who broke in through the kitchen door.

"We checked upstairs," says Isaiah. "He's not here. He hasn't been here, we couldn't pick up his scent inside."

"Are you four the only ones here or did you bring the whole damn tribe?" I ask, one hand on my hip like I mean business. "And I really hope you two didn't break the door. My dad will be pissed."

"The door is fine," Isaac says as he smiles at me. He's a cute one, too. He and Isaiah are almost completely identical. The only way I can tell them apart is their eyes. Isaac's are dark brown so they almost look black. Isaiah's are much lighter, like the color of whiskey. Their hair is also cut very short, almost all the way down to the scalp.

"All right, you three join the others and keep looking. I don't want to take any chances. I'm going to stay here in case he comes back," Gavin delegates orders as if he is a pro.

"Are all of you _seriously_ looking for Jacob Black?" I demand. "Why? He's harmless!"

"We don't know that," Gavin informs me, "we don't know what he's here for or where he's from or if he has more with him-"

"More _what_, Gavin?!" Now I'm shouting. "I'm getting really sick of all this secrecy! If you don't tell me what is going on right now, I am going to go find Jacob myself and see if _he _will tell me." Gavin looks at his friends and nods. They leave through the front and Gavin closes the door behind them.

At this point I'm done talking. It's Gavin's turn to talk.

But he's looking at me as if he's waiting for me to say something.

He'll be waiting for a while if that's the way he's going to play this thing.

So, I scoff, turn on my heels and head up the stairs.

"Teag," Gavin pleads as he follows me. "You have to understand that this is hard for me."

"I _don't _understand, Gavin!" I exclaim. "And would you like to know why I don't understand? It's because you refuse to tell me what is going on, even though it apparently has a lot to do with me."

"At this point in time, it has everything to do with you," Gavin confirms, "at least where I am concerned it does." We finally get to my room and I walk in and sit on my bed. Gavin doesn't sit, though, he stands with his hands in his pockets, looking like he has no idea what he is doing right now. "It's just … hard to verbalize."

"Well, try," I suggest. "It's not like I'm hard to talk to, Gav. Come on, I'm your best friend. We tell each other everything, at least that was what I thought before today."

"There are some things I just can't tell you, Teag," he sounds so exhausted.

"Well, in case you have forgotten, there is a kid who just rolled into town who probably _will_ tell me what is going on," I remind him.

"I really don't want you seeking him out," Gavin states. "And it's not just because I'm jealous or anything like that. It's just that … God, I don't know how to explain this without telling you everything."

"Then just tell me everything."

"It's just hard to say …" he trails off. "I guess that I'll just have to show you. I'm going to leave the room for a second, and then I'm going to come back. But you have to promise me something, first."

"OK," I answer.

"You have to promise me that you're not going to try to run, and that you're not going to see me any differently after you see this," he states. "It's something that I've always been, well, at least for as long as you've known me. This shouldn't change anything because everything is still the same." I want to tell him that he's scaring me, but he already seems upset, so I keep my mouth shut. "You have to promise to stay exactly where you are. You're not in any danger because I've got myself completely under control."

I nod. I'm afraid that if I open my mouth I'll say something to make him change his mind.

"OK, I'll be right back." And then he walks out of my room.

Not for nothing, I'm a little freaked out. Gavin's never so serious. To him, everything is like a big joke. And why wouldn't it be? The kid has everything besides things to worry about. He was wealthy and attractive and really smart, and these things made him popular.

And when I say smart, I mean brilliant. He got into Harvard, Yale, and Berkeley. But in the end he decided to go Merced, which is basically on top of Yosemite. I don't know why he did that, he never gave me an answer when I asked. But I'm getting off topic, now.

However, there's no time to get back on topic because a humongous wolf has appeared in my doorway.

Naturally, I'm a little freaked.

"Gavin!" I shout, hoping to get his attention. If there's a wolf in my room it's probably best that he stays away. I glance towards my window, wondering if I can make it there before the wolf does. I probably can't. It is a wolf, after all.

But what the hell is it doing in my house.

And Gavin hasn't answered.

I wonder if the wolf ate him. It's certainly big enough for Gavin to fit in there.

I'm crying. How did that happen? Probably not a good idea. Can't wolves smell fear? Or is that bees?

"Nice wolfy .." I trail off as I start to inch closer to the window. "I haven't done anything to you, have I? I'm just going to go jump out the window and leave you alone .." Quick as a flash, the wolf moves towards the window, as if to block it. Like he understood me.

But it still hasn't attacked me, nor does it look like it's going to. He's just staring at me with those big brown eyes. Something within me recognizes those eyes. They look so familiar. Then it dawns on me.

"No way …" I trail off, shocked that I'm even thinking what I'm thinking. "Gavin?" The wolf's head nods. "Ohmigod."

That's when I pass out.

I'm not sure how long I'm out, but when I wake up, the wolf is gone and Gavin is hovering over me, looking very concerned.

My first reflex is to jump away from him, and I do. He's sitting at the foot of my bed, and I scoot all the way to the head.

"Come on, now, Teag," he begins, "if I had wanted to eat you, I would have done it while you were out, don't you think? I'm not going to hurt you."

"You're a werewolf," I gasp.

"I really hate that term," he states, "though that's basically what it is. I'm not like the ones in movies, though. I don't need the full moon, and I don't turn into a complete monster. I didn't brutally maul you or anything." My facial expression doesn't change. "You promised that this wouldn't change anything between us."

"I didn't think it would be something like this!" I exclaim. "Gavin! You're a _werewolf!_ What the hell am I supposed to do with that?"

"Nothing," he answers. "Really. You're still completely safe around me, I would never let anything hurt you, nor would I hurt you myself. Ever. I am completely in control of myself. I would … I would die if I ever hurt you."

"So … you think Jacob Black is a werewolf, too?"

"Oh, I don't think. I know," Gavin answers. "It's easy for wolves to tell. My problem with him is I don't know anything about him, and I don't want him around you because I don't know if he's as in control of himself as I am."

"The boys aren't going to hurt him if they find him, are they?" I ask. "He hasn't done anything to me."

"No, they're not going to hurt him," he assures me, "I gave them orders to corner him and keep him in one place if they find him and wait for me."

"You gave them orders?" I ask. "What are you like … the Alpha Male or something?" It's meant to be a joke.

"More or less," Gavin answers, shrugging.

"Oh." Not a very good joke. I find myself even more attracted to him, now. Alpha Male … that's pretty sexy. "So what … do you think Jacob is here to cause trouble and eat people or something?"

"We don't know why he's here," he answers, "and that's what we're going to find out, though … something happened today that concerns me a little, which involves you."

"What?"

"Well … with us wolves, there is this thing called imprinting. For every wolf, there is one person in the world with whom they share a … very special bond. When a wolf imprint, it's like love at first sight, only way more intense. All of us would die for our imprints if we had to and not even give it a second thought." Now I'm starting to put the pieces together.

"And you think I'm Jacob's imprint?" I ask.

"I can't imagine why else he would have been looking at you that way," he answers, "or why he would come to your house."

"Then why are you so worried?" I ask. "If I'm his imprint, he's not going to hurt me."

"That's not necessarily true," he corrects me, "wolves have injured their imprints before. Not on purpose, of course. They were just in the wrong place when they lost control. And that's what I'm afraid of because … well … OK. I'm really worried and feeling really overprotective because … there is something really strange going on here."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, supposedly, for every wolf there is his imprint that's it," he explains. "Like, one imprint doesn't go to two wolves. It's never happened before, at least not that I know of."

"Am I someone else's imprint, too?" I ask as I try to think of all the Awahnee boys I have ever met. I've met quite a few, so it's hard to narrow down. And I don't even know if all of them are wolves.

"Yes," he answers, but I can tell he doesn't want to elaborate. That's not going to fly.

"Whose?" I press. There are a few beats of silence. He really doesn't want to answer this question for some reason. If I'm so important to this person, I don't see why it's such a big deal. I should know, right?

" Well …" he begins slowly. "You're mine."


	4. This Is All Too Weird

Chapter Four

Did he just say that? Really? I'm his "imprint"?

Well, he sure as hell could have fooled me. I mean, what has he been doing for the past three years? Where has he been? Did he _just_ figure it out when Jacob showed up? Or has he suddenly gotten afraid that I _might _not stick around and wait for him forever?

"Will you please say something, Teag?" He begs.

"Sorry if I'm not the most articulate after I've just been informed that my best friend is a werewolf and I'm like … the yang to his yin or whatever," I snap.

I can have a bit of a temper. It's the Irish in me, you know? I do try my hardest to keep it on lock, but sometimes it's hard. Especially when everyone around me is completely ridiculous.

"Actually, you would be yin," he corrects me. "Yin is soft and substantial and calm. Yang is restless and hard."

"Oh, shut up, Gavin," I scoff. I can't help laughing, though. He _would_ say something like that. I'm not about to argue with him about yin and yang because, quite honestly, I don't care. He's trying to change the subject. "I'm angry with you, you know."

"Why are you angry with me?" Gavin asks.

"Because I have known you for three years and this is the first time this has come up," I remind him. "I'm supposed to be your best friend."

"You _are_ my best friend," he assures me, "you're more than my best friend. You're my soul mate."

"If you don't shut up with all the corney lines," I warn, "I'm going to stab you with some silver or something."

"That's a myth," he states as he holds up his right hand. There's a silver band with an intricately carved design depicting wolves on it. "I actually like silver a lot. Much better than gold, not nearly as tacky."

"It's pretty," I state as I look down at the ring. Why have I never noticed that before?

"If you like it I can have another one made for you," he tells me. I'm just picturing what it would look like on my finger when I remember the matter at hand.

"You need to stop changing the subject," I order. Suddenly there's a loud thump on the roof outside my window, and Gavin immediately gets between me and it, obviously ready to protect me from some threat. My heart leaps into my throat at the thought of it being Jacob in my window.

But it's just Linden.

"Sorry," he says, "all the doors and windows downstairs are locked, and I didn't think you would appreciate my breaking in."

"That's very kind of you, Linden," I say, "I'm glad someone is concerned about my mental health." Gavin just gives me a look that says 'stop being so dramatic.' I have become very good at deciphering his looks.

"We've got him, Gavin," Linden cuts to business, and this gets my attention.

"Jacob?" I ask as I stand up.

"Who else?" Linden replies.

"That was fast," Gavin says, sounding pretty impressed. Obviously he is not used to such efficiency.

"You haven't hurt him, have you?" I demand as I maneuver my way around Gavin so that I can see Linden more easily. Instead of answering my question, Linden just looks at Gavin.

"Answer her," Gavin sighs.

"This is ridiculous …" I mutter.

"We haven't hurt him," Linden assures me, "we haven't even touched him. We've got him cornered up near half dome."

"Has he tried to attack?" Gavin asks as he leaves my room, completely forgetting about me. Well, that's not going to fly. At all. I follow him.

"No, he's just been running. He doesn't know his way around here, though. It was pretty easy for us to herd him into a good place," Linden replies.

"Guys, need I remind you that he hasn't done anything wrong?" I ask, just in case anyone is listening.

"He's stepped on our turf," Gavin replies, "that's enough."

"Well, how was he supposed to know that he was walking into a bunch of pig-headed jerks?" I inquire. I don't get an answer to this question. That doesn't really bother me, though. I just continue to follow them.

"Where do you think you're going?" Gavin asks.

"Well, I'm Jacob's imprint," I remind him, simply because I know that it will bother him to hear me say it, "I'm not about to let you brutes abuse him."

"You're not coming with us," Gavin corrects.

"And you're going to stop me?" I ask. "I know how to get to half dome. You can leave without me, but I'll just go there myself, and who knows what will happen to me then? I might get eaten by a bear or something."

"You shouldn't have told her, man," Linden states.

"Yeah, I can see that, now," Gavin replies, exasperated. "All right, go ahead. I'll be right there. Just keep him in one spot, we'll find you." Now it's Linden's turn to sigh. He turns and goes, probably ready to morph into wolf mode or whatever it is they do. "You're not going to make me regret this, are you?"

"You mean you're not regretting it already?" I joke. He smiles. I really do love it when he does that.

Gavin stops the Beemer right at the beginning of one of the trails that leads up to half dome, the magnificent granite structure on the eastern end of Yosemite Valley. This particular trail is pretty long. It would take me, going at a pretty good pace, at least an hour and a half to reach the end of it.

Before Gavin gets out of the car, he starts taking his clothes off.

"What are you doing?" I ask as he gets out to take off his jeans, revealing the black boxers beneath.

"Well, I can't phase with all my clothes on, can I?" He answers. "Turn around. Once I phase, you're going to get on my back. It will take too long if we walk, and though I'm sure he's way outnumbered, I don't want to take any chances."

"You mean I'm going to have to _ride_ you?" I ask, not really very excited about the idea.

"Don't worry, I'll be very careful," he assures me. "You'll have fun."

"I doubt it," I mutter as I turn around. I'm really not too excited about this. Sure, I know that it will be Gavin in there, and Gavin would never do anything to hurt me. At least not on purpose. But that doesn't mean that I can't be nervous.

As I'm staring out the passenger-side window, the same huge wolf that appeared in my doorway about a half hour ago comes up next to the door. That's when the fact that this is all happening so fast hits me. An hour ago, my life was completely normal. Now it's full of werewolves.

I get out of the car. There's no use in prolonging the agony, and I _did_ make him bring me.

_You just remember that he wanted to leave you at home_ I silently remind myself as I hop onto his back. He really is pretty huge. He moves suddenly and I grab a huge patch of fur to keep myself on his back, and lets out a loud yelp.

It's strange how the sound tears at my heart.

"Sorry," I murmur as I lean forward so that I can put my arms around his neck instead. His fur feels really soft against my cheek, and I'm immediately soothed. This isn't going to be so bad.

And I'm not wrong. As I speed through the forest on Gavin's back, I feel a supreme rush of adrenaline that I've never felt before. I find myself really wishing that he had told me about this sooner, because I feel closer to him now than I ever have.

But it's over too soon.

We stop and I can see more of them. There are at least ten surrounding one, and I figure that one is Jacob.

"This is mean," I state, "can't this be done in a different way?" But of course I don't get an answer. I can't speak wolf. Instead, I basically get thrown off his back, and then he makes his way through the pack.

I'd have to be an idiot to try and get in on this one.

It's weird, sitting on the outside, observing a spectacle where you have absolutely no idea what is going on. The trees are blocking the sun pretty well, but there is enough light to see what's happening. Gavin is approaching Jacob, whose fur is quite like the color of his skin; a gorgeous russet color. He doesn't look scared, but like anyone who is surrounded by a bunch of people - wolves? - that they don't know, he seems wary, and ready to protect himself. And I really hope that he's capable, because if they start to attack him, I'm not really sure if I'll be able to sit here and just watch, which could result in my death.

But all of this silence is starting to bother me, now. I really have no idea what is going on. They're probably talking about me right in front of me. It could be anything.

Without even thinking, I start making my way through the pack. As soon as I reach the first wolf, Gavin's head snaps to look at me. In a second, he's right in front of me, growling. And even though it's Gavin, there's no way to not be scared. I immediately back up, but not down.

"This is ridiculous," I state. "Can't we do this in human form? I mean, you'll have just as easy a time beating up as regular guys as you will as werewolves."

The distraction is just what Jacob needed, because the next time I look to where he was, he's not there. But about four seconds later, he's standing behind me, zipping up the fly of his jeans.

"And there's also much less of a chance of us hurting her if you phase back," he adds. Then he looks straight at Gavin. "It was really stupid of you to bring her here." There is a chorus of growls, the loudest of which comes from Gavin, and Jacob grabs me around the waist and puts me behind him. "I mean, if she were _my_ imprint, which she is, I would have left her somewhere safe."

"Maybe it's not such a great idea to provoke them?" I say to the middle of his back, which is where I stand against him. Suddenly, they all start running towards us. "I told you!" I scream. I try to run, but he grabs me.

"Don't move," he orders as he grabs onto me. Instead of feeling claws and teeth slowly tearing me to shreds, I see all of them fly by us or jump over us.

"Where are they going?" I ask.

"Probably to phase back," he answers. "They don't want you to see them naked." I nod. He makes a good point. When it sounds like they're all gone, I get myself out of Jacob's arms. However, there's one more wolf left, and it's Gavin.

Even though he's an animal, it's pretty easy to tell that he is pissed the hell off. He brushes past us.

"I think that means wait here," Jacob states. I nod again. I'm having a hard time finding words. "Thanks for that, by the way. I really was not excited to fight off eleven of them."

"I don't think they would have hurt you," I assure him.

"You think wrong," he answers. "I know that if a stranger invaded _my_ territory_, _my pack would react in the same way. And we wouldn't let the invader live."

"Where exactly _is_ your territory?" I ask.

"La Push, Washington. It's the Quileute reservation," he answers. I give him the blankest look I can manage. "Uhm … near Forks?" he tries again.

"No idea," I answer.

"That's fine," he replies, shrugging, "it doesn't really matter. I'm not going back." I'm about to ask why when our friends rejoin us, minus Gavin. He probably has the farthest to go to get his clothes. Linden, who I'm picking up is like Gavin's right hand man, is the first to speak.

"You're lucky she's here and that she means something to Gavin," he states.

"I know," Jacob answers as he slings an arm over my shoulder.

"You're not out of the woods yet," Linden reminds him.

"Literally," I pipe up. Linden just gives me a look, and then looks back at Jacob.

"So I wouldn't be acting so cocky," he finishes. "Especially not with our leader's imprint." I can feel Jacob stiffen, but otherwise he doesn't betray that the last comment got to him. "He doesn't like others touching his things."

"_His_ things?" I demand, suddenly feeling outraged. "Since when I _Gavin's_ thing?"

"Err … since your first day of high school?" Isaac suggests.

"No, never," I correct.

"Whatever," says Linden, "we're gonna start walking towards Gavin. We're going to his house so we can discuss what's happening here."

"I don't know about you guys," I correct, "but my father is going to be pissed if I don't get home soon." I pull out my cell phone to check the time. It's three-thirty, but they don't know what time my father gets home.

"We'll take you home, then," says Linden, "I'm sure Gavin would much rather you weren't there, anyway."

"No, I was thinking somewhere more along the lines of you all come to my house," I state. "There's room enough in my backyard. I'll light a bonfire, it will be a blast. We can make friends."

This doesn't even get a response. The Awahnee boys just turn around and start walking down the trail. I guess they're trusting that Jacob is not going to run away.

"It's beautiful around here," Jacob states about ten minutes into the hike. I'm glad he spoke, the silence was starting to get to me.

"Yeah, pretty spectacular," I agree. "I can't imagine living anywhere else."

"You're one of them, right?" He asks me.

"One of what?" I ask. "A werewolf?"

"No, I know you're not a wolf," he answers, "but you're part of their tribe, right?"

I nod. "My mother was Awahnee. She died two years ago."

"Do you mind if I ask how?" He asks. I don't really mind. It has become something that is not really that hard for me to think about.

"No one's really quite sure," I answer. "The general consensus is that she was mauled by a bear." There's a sharp intake of breath from Jacob.

"What a way to go …" he trails off.

"Yeah," I agree, "but I guess it's what she would have wanted. She liked animals." I smile, and Jacob laughs, too. "So, you got to ask a personal question of me, so now it's my turn."

"Anything you want," Jacob responds.

"Why'd you leave wherever you came from?" I ask. "From what I've seen tonight, a pack is a pretty tight knit group and they're pretty territorial, so why would you leave?" He doesn't answer right away.

In fact, I wait a few minutes for his answer, but it doesn't seem like it's coming. "You said that I could ask you anything."

"I said that you could ask me anything," he confirms, "I didn't say I was going to answer anything. The reason I left Washington is … well, it's complicated."

"We've got quite a hike," I assure him. "Maybe if they know why you're here, they'd be less inclined to kill you."

"That's not necessarily true," Isaiah, who has obviously been listening in on our conversation, interrupts, "but it _might_ help."

"Well, they're just going to have to deal with not knowing," Jacob replies, "because I'm not telling them." He leans over so that he can whisper in my ear. "But I might tell you, later."

I really like this hold that I supposedly have over him.

He didn't say that very quietly, though. It seemed like he was trying to let the rest of the boys know that they weren't going to stop him from seeing me, no matter what they did.

Well, short of killing him.

And I'm not going to put that past them. I'm getting a completely different vibe from these boys than I usually do. Normally, they're friendly and easy going. However, right now, their mentality is completely different. They really are animals. And they're vicious.

"Where's Gavin?" I ask, once again trying to break the silence.

"He decided that he should cool off a bit," Linden answers. "You really pissed him off, you know. I suggested that he head to his house to calm down before we get there."

"We're going to my house, though," I remind him.

"Yeah, to drop you off," Linden counters. "You're not coming with us. I have strict orders to leave you at your house."

"You're so obedient," I croon. However, my attempted provocation gets no response. I don't think there's a way out of this one. If it were Gavin it would be one thing, but Linden obviously doesn't care about what I have to say.

I never liked him.

When we get to the end of the trail about an hour later, Gavin's car is not there. Bummer. I was hoping that he had decided to wait instead so that I wouldn't have to walk the rest of the way home, which is about fifteen miles.

"Are we really going to walk all the way back to my house?" I ask. "It's so far!

"Would you like to crawl instead?" Linden answers. "Don't start." That's when Jacob stops and hunches over slightly.

"Get on my back," he suggests. I am more than happy to oblige.

"She's right, though," Isaac agrees, "it's going to take forever if we walk."

"All right," Linden says, "the rest of you go ahead. I'll walk with them."

"Do you want us to bring you a car?" One of the other boys, I think his name is Ben, asks.

"Good idea," Linden answers. "We'll be on this road." The boys nod and then they bound back into the forest.

"So, why is it that you get stuck with the babysitting job?" I ask. Now I'm just trying to be obnoxious.

"Gavin doesn't trust anyone else with your safety," Linden replies.

"Why would he trust you with it?" I ask. "You don't even like me."

"It doesn't really matter if I don't like you," Linden answers, "Gavin asked me to watch you, so I'm doing it. You could shut up and make this easier on both of us."

"Oh, it's plenty easy on me," I assure him, "I mean, I'm not even walking."

"I'm sure that Gavin would get over it if I just gave you a little scratch," Linden states, "don't think I won't take a swipe."

"There's only one of you, now," Jacob reminds him, "I could take you. Quite easily, too."

"What makes you think it would be easy?" Linden asks.

"Oh, it's just a hunch," Jacob responds. "I've been here longer than you think, and I've been watching. Your pack doesn't do anything besides run around the park scaring tourists. You haven't had to deal with _half_ of what I have." I'm hoping that Jacob will elaborate. After all, I am pretty curious about his life back at his home and why he left it.

Linden doesn't say anything.

"Not so tough without your pack, huh?" Jacob taunts.

"Just in case you forgot," Linden begins, "we'll be with them soon enough."

"Can you two just stop it?" I ask. "You're giving me a headache." And I need to think. I really don't want to hand Jacob over to the Awahnee boys. I need a plan.

Twenty minutes later, we pull up in front of my house just as my father is getting out of his car.

"I thought that I told you to come straight home after work," he states, his hands on his hips, looking like a pissed off father.

"I meant to," I answer, and suddenly a light bulb goes on in my head. "But I met someone and we lost track of time." As I open the door, I pull Jacob out with me. "This is Jacob Black. He's from Washington. I was wondering if he could have dinner with us."

"Uhhh …" My father is at a loss for words. I don't bring boys over for dinner often, mostly because the only boy I'm interested in is a) hated by my father and b) until today uninterested in me. "Sure. We're only having Chinese, though. I don't really feel like cooking."

"Do you like Chinese?" I ask.

"I like anything," Jacob responds.

"Great!" I exclaim as I continue to drag Jacob towards my front door. I wave back to Linden and the other two pack members in the car. "Thanks, boys! See you later!"

Linden looks like he's ready to kill me. But what can he do? He can't force Jacob into the car in front of my father. Nor can he go all wolfy.

"You're a genius," Jacob whispers in my ear as we enter my house.

I can't help but smile and say, "That and many other things, sweetheart."


	5. He's Gotta Know

Chapter Five

"Pick whatever you want," my dad says as he throws the menu at Jacob.

"He's going to regret that," Jacob mutters as he sits down on my living room couch and opens the menu. "I can eat a lot. Especially Chinese food. You have to basically eat your weight in it to be filled. "So … how mad do you think your boyfriend is going to be."

"Livid, I suppose," I answer. "He's not used to people not listening to him."

"That's an Alpha trait," Jacob states, nodding. "It won't go away."

"Not if I have anything to say about it," I scoff.

"And what do you have to say about it?" Jacob responds as he looks up from the menu to look at me. There's a smile on his face, but I can tell that this is a serious question, and I know exactly what he means by it.

"I don't know," I answer honestly. "It would be surprisingly hard to make me choose between the two of you. Obviously, I have known him longer, but he has lied to me and strung me on."

"How so?" Jacob asks as he looks back at the menu. He's trying to appear nonchalant.

"Well …" I begin, "he has a different girlfriend almost every week, and it's never me. So it really would serve him right if he lost me."

"But you don't want to pick," Jacob finishes for me.

"Not at all," I respond.

"You really shouldn't have to," he replies, shrugging, "things like this aren't supposed to happen. I suppose it's the Universe trying to play a joke on me. It seems like I'm always the brunt of the Universe's jokes."

"Speaking of which," I begin, "you still have to tell me why you left Washington."

"I'll give you the short version for now," he says as he cranes his neck, probably to make sure that my father is not anywhere to close. He leans over and whispers in my ear, "Vampires."

"That's a very short version," I observe. I don't even question the existence of vampires. If werewolves can exist, so can they, I suppose. Not much can surprise me right now. "Care to elaborate a little bit?"

"There was a girl, too," he adds, "and she's going to be marrying one of those vampires. I couldn't take it. I had to leave."

"You're in love with this girl?" I ask.

"Very much so," he answers. "At least I think so."

"You think so?" I press. "How hard is it to tell?"

"Well, when I was near her, I thought I was in love with her. It hurt me to see her with him. But the farther and farther I got away from her, the easier it got to think about her with him. Now, it doesn't hurt at all," he exclaims.

"Maybe it's not love, then," I suggest. "Maybe it's just jealousy towards this other guy. He won and you didn't."

"You're so kind …" Jacob trails off. "What are you going to get?"

"Chicken Lo Mein," I answer. "It's what I always get. What about you?" Obviously he's done talking about that. If he were Gavin, I would push. But he's not. I know how far I can go with Gavin, but this guy is new. I have to be careful.

"Sesame chicken, pork fried rice, shrimp lo mein, and a few egg rolls," he answers. I can't help but laugh. "What? You hang out with werewolves all the time, don't you?"

"I hang out with Gavin all the time," I correct him. "And he was hiding the whole wolf thing from me, and doing a very good job. That includes eating normal amounts of food while near me."

"You see, that's what doesn't make sense to me," Jacob states. "If you're his imprint, he should have told you as soon as he knew. That's usually what happens because when you find that person, you don't want to run the risk of losing them. And you're saying he waited three years?" I nod.

"About three years, yes," I reply.

"Something's going on. That just doesn't add up," Jacob finishes.

"What doesn't add up?" My father asks as he comes back into the living room with the portable phone in his hand.

"Uhmmm … the prices of this food," I answer quickly. Jacob looks impressed.

"Yeah, it's ridiculous," my father agrees, "but it's pretty good. Have you decided what you want?" I give him my order, even though he already knows it, and then Jacob gives his. "Where are you gonna put all that, kid?"

"I'll find room for it," Jacob promises. My dad laughs and dials the number. Now it's my turn to be impressed. I thought my father was going to give him a hard time. I mean, he always gives Gavin and the Awahnee boys a bunch of crap. I would even go as far as saying that he hates them. But he's being very civil towards Jacob.

What did those boys do to my father? I'm having a hard time believing that they cause that much trouble in the park. And even if they did, they would be doing it as wolves, wouldn't they? And my dad doesn't know about that. At least, I don't think that he does.

Gosh, I have so many questions right now. It's completely possible that nothing is as I thought it was.

"You all right?" Jacob murmurs. "You looked pretty far away."

"Yeah, I'm fine," I assure him. "I was just thinking about something."

"About what?" Jacob asks. Normally, I would be upset or annoyed by someone pressing me this way. I'm a pretty private person, but I really don't mind it with Jacob. I guess that goes with being his imprint. It's really easy to talk to him and what's more, I actually want to open up to him.

"Nothing," I answer. Just because I want to doesn't mean I will. At a time like this, I'm thinking it's better to keep everything to myself until I've got everything figured out for sure. There's a knock on the door.

"I'll go get that," my father says.

"Twenty bucks says it's Gavin," Jacob bets.

"I'm not betting against you," I answer. We don't even have to ask who it is.

"Get out of here," my father orders. Yep, that's Gavin all right.

"I know you told me you never wanted to see me here, Mr. Kincaid," he begins, "but I really need to talk to Tegan."

"Is she ignoring you or something?" He asks. "That's the only reason I can think for you to come here like this. If she is, I can't really say I'm upset about it."

Now this is different. I haven't heard Gavin and my father speak for years. My dad really doesn't like Gavin. I used to just think it was because he's always hanging around me and I'm the only family he's got left, but his behavior towards Jacob has proven that theory wrong. Something happened between the two of them, and I really want to know about it.

"You're far away again," Jacob brings me back down to Earth.

"Sorry," I answer, "there's just so much to think about. I can't believe I never noticed any of it before."

"Like what?" Jacob asks.

"Like how much my father hates Gavin," I supply. Even as I say this, they are still arguing at the front door. "But as far as I know, he has no reason for it. I used to just think it was because he is a boy in whom I am interested, but that theory is out the window now that he is being nice to you."

"I don't know if you have noticed this," Jacob begins, "but your boy Gavin is the biggest jerk in California. Maybe even the world. I think that's reason enough."

"He's not a jerk to me," I remind him.

"That's because he wants you to think that you're his imprint," Jacob counters.

"What do you mean?"

"I don't think you're his imprint," Jacob says simply. "I think he's lying. I don't know why he would, maybe because he just feels threatened by me and knows that you'll believe him. There is one good thing to be said for him, though. He must really care for you if he's willing to lie about something like that just to keep you. Pretending you're his imprint would keep him from acknowledging his real imprint, even if he found her."

"Unless he wanted to lose me," I finishes.

"And I don't think he's willing to lose you," Jacob adds. That's when the door slams and my father walks back into the living room, looking as calm as he did when he exited. I look at him expectantly.

"I have to say, I'm not too upset about our choice to not speak to him," he states.

"I'm speaking to Gavin," I inform my father, "just not right now. He's being a little … territorial." Jacob snorts.

"He doesn't want you hanging out with her, does he?" My dad asks Jacob.

"More or less," Jacob answers, shrugging.

"Well, don't you let him and the other Awahnee boys scare you off," my dad says, though it's more like an order. "They're all a bunch of inconsiderate punks." I stifle a laugh. He sounds like such a senior citizen. Jacob, however, has much more control over himself than I do.

"I'll keep that in mind, sir," he says.

"So, how long are you and your family staying in Yosemite? Are they enjoying the park?" Of course, conversation with my dad always turns to the park.

"I'm actually here on my own," says Jacob. "Just wanted to get out of town for the summer, you know? But I like it. The wilderness is beautiful."

"It really is," my dad agrees, "and have you seen the sky at night, yet?"

"I have," Jacob answers, "it's spectacular." What's really spectacular is Jacob. He doesn't seem nervous at all. In fact, he looks right at home chatting with my father. He really is very charming. And now that Jacob has mentioned that Gavin could be lying, I am starting to feel a difference in my attraction to him.

With Gavin, it's purely physical. If he wasn't as hot as he is, I don't think I would want to be his girlfriend. I would be perfectly content being his best friend.

But Jacob makes me feel warm inside, a warmth I haven't really felt since before my mother died. Like there is no one I would rather be around than him, and if I'm not going to be around him, then I'm going to find a way.

But then again, it could all just be Power of Suggestion. Jacob could just be saying these things to make me angry with Gavin. After all, I don't really know much about him. He could be a liar. Hell, for all I know, he could be insane. But for some reason it doesn't really matter to me.

"How old are you, Jacob?" My father asks.

"Sixteen," Jacob answers, "and you can call me Jake. Jacob is so formal."

"Sixteen!" My father exclaims, which is totally understandable. Jacob does not look like he's sixteen. I think back to a few hours ago when I thought he was at least two years older if not more. "You must be at least 6'5"!"

"6'7", actually," Jacob corrects a little haughtily. He's apparently proud of his height. That's when the doorbell rings. My dad gets up to get it and pay.

But when he comes back, his demeanor is completely different. It's as if he's in a completely different mood than he was thirty seconds ago. I can see that Jacob notices it, too, and I can feel him start become uncomfortable as he sits next to me. My father spends the meal in silence, seemingly thinking to himself. Jacob and I make casual conversation in an attempt to make things less awkward, but it's not really working. If anything it's just making it worse.

And so goes the next half hour of my life. Tense and uncomfortable. It wouldn't have been so annoying if my father had been obnoxious from the start.

"Do you have anywhere to stay, Jake?" I ask as he starts to consolidate all of his trash. I'm amazed that he actually ate all that food.

"No," he answers, "I'll find a place, though."

"Why not here?" I ask. "You could crash on the couch."

"No," my father says quickly, "he can't."

"Dad," I whine, "why not? I promise I'm not gonna let him sneak into my room or something. Gosh, don't you trust me?"

"I trust you just fine, Tegan," he assures me. "It's him that I don't trust."

"Dad!" I exclaim.

"It's all right, Tegan," Jacob says as he stands up, ready to leave. "It's your father's house, and if he doesn't want me here than I'll leave."

"That's what I like to hear," my father answers with a forced smile. "In fact, I'll show you to the door." I don't get a chance to protest as my father herds Jacob towards the front door, leaving me there sputtering. I'm hoping to catch some of their conversation, but they both go outside and the door slams behind them. They're not out there for very long, maybe a minute or so, but when my father comes back in, he does not look to happy.

"What did you say to him!?" I demand as I get in his face.

"It's none of your concern," he answers.

"Of course it's my concern!" I exclaim. "You just threw out my friend! In a very rude manner, might I add! What happened? It seemed like you liked him."

"I don't need to explain myself to you," he says to me. "I'm your father and I'll do what I think is best for you."

"You don't know what's best for me," I mumble as I turn on my heels and storm towards the stairs.

"What did you say to me, young lady?" My father barks.

"I said," I begin as I turn around on the middle of the staircase, "that you don't know what's best for me."

"Like hell I don't!" He shouts.

"Mom would never let you act this way if she were still alive," I go for the low blow. "She would wonder why you were being such a pig-headed jerk. Jacob did nothing to offend you in any way, shape, or form. You're just being unreasonable, like you always are."

"You can think what you want," dad says after he takes a few seconds to regain his cool, "but you'd better leave your bedroom door open." And then he turns around and walks into the kitchen.

"Leave my door open?" I say softly to myself as I walk back towards my room. Why would he want me to leave my door open? I never leave my door open. He must know more than I think.

He must want to be listening for something.

Like maybe a werewolf coming in through my window.


	6. How Else Can I Explain It?

Chapter Six

Needless to say, I feel like I've been thrown. Hard. Probably off a cliff. And believe me, I'm definitely still falling. There's no way that it ends here. There has got to be tons more that I don't know. And I really hate there are things about my life that I don't know.

I wish my mother was here. After all, she was the Awahnee Indian of the family. Sure, I've got the blood in me, but since she died, my father hasn't tried really hard to make sure that I stay in touch with my roots. And to be quite honest, I don't really want to. It's too painful. It reminds me of her too much.

But she would probably know what's going on.

I'm also sure that Jacob would know what is going on, and he would also tell me if he got some time. Unfortunately, everyone was content to give him a hard time. Honestly, I feel pretty bad for the kid. So in love with a girl that he was driven from his home when she didn't choose him? That's pretty harsh.

I find myself wondering if he's in love with me. Obviously, being that I am his imprint, he feels some sort of strong attachment to me, but does that equate to love?

Add that to the list of things that I don't know.

I find myself really wanting to talk to Gavin, if that makes any sense at all. If Jacob is right (and I have to remind myself that Jacob could also be lying), then I have no reason to trust Gavin. But that doesn't change the fact that he has been my best friend for three years.

So … I have a decision to make. Have my father be mad at me and stay in the dark, or have my father be REALLY mad at me and find out what's going on.

Come on. Really? As if that was tough. Either way my dad is going to be mad at me, so the degree of anger doesn't really matter to me. I mean, he's my father. He has to go on loving me eventually.

I really want to call Gavin, but I decide it would be better to get out of my house, first. Obviously rolling out the front door is not going to work out, so I go for the window. There's a bit of roof that overhangs the front porch, and I figure that if I hold onto it and let myself drop, it won't be that far.

Yeah … that was what I thought. However, as I'm hanging off the roof, I find myself wishing that I had thought it through more thoroughly.

"Just let go," I hear a familiar voice from beneath me. "I won't even let you hit the ground." I look beneath me to see Jacob. Though I'm glad to see him, I'm still a little skeptical. It's not like I am a small girl. No, I'm not fat, but I'm tall; about 5'10". "Come on. Trust me. And I have some things to tell you that I'm sure you want to know about."

Now, this is what I'm talking about. I let go of the edge of the roof. True to his word, Jacob doesn't even let my feet touch the ground. He catches me bridal style and smiles.

"Where are we going to go?"

"I don't really have anywhere to go," Jacob answers. "I've been sleeping outside."

"No!" I exclaim.

"Yes, I really have," Jacob says to me.

"Well, I'm sure we can find somewhere for you to sleep," I assure him as I whip out my cell phone. I do have other friends besides Gavin, friends with quite large houses with extra rooms and parents that aren't completely ridiculous.

"Yooo! Teag!" My other best friend, Camryn exclaims as she answers my phone call. "I thought I would never hear from you at all this summer, seeing as you're a working girl and all. To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"Well," I begin, "I have a new friend who just rolled into town, but he has absolutely nowhere to stay. I asked my dad if he could crash on my couch and the old man completely flipped out. I know that you have an extra room," or two, "and I was hoping that he might be able to stay in your house for a little bit."

"Is he cute?" Camryn asks. This is not completely unexpected. I look Jacob up and down. The answer to this is obvious.

"Oh yeah," I reply.

"Then why isn't he at my house?!" She demands. "Bring him over!"

"Only one problem. We're at my house, right now, and you know I don't have a car," I tell her.

"Then I'll come pick you up, duh!"

"We can't wait for you here, though," I say to her, "because I kinda snuck out and as we're speaking I am walking away from my house."

"Roger that," Camryn replies, "well, you start walking in my direction and I'll start driving in yours."

--

I can see Camryn's face as she rolls up to us in her brand new Honda Civic. She looks dumbfounded. Camryn, like most of my friends, is 100 Awahnee. She's very into the Native American thing and tries to only have relationships with Native Americans, however, she completely hates all the Awahnee boys. They're jerks, she thinks, and she's not completely wrong.

So, she gets really excited when she sees a hot Native American that is not Awahnee.

The brakes squeal as she slams on them.

"Get in my car. Right now," she orders. "Hot boy in front."

"Hello," says Jacob politely as he opens the back door for me and then closes it after I am comfortably seated. Then, because he doesn't want to disappoint Camryn, who is being so kind to us, he folds himself into the front seat and pushes the seat back as far is it will go to accommodate his ridiculously long legs.

"So, boy of my dreams," Camryn begins, "what is your name?"

"Jacob Black," he answers. "But you can call me Jake."

"Oh, I'm gonna call you some things …" Camryn trails off. She's nuts. This is what happens when you are ridiculously rich. You become ridiculously obnoxious.

She's funny, though, so I keep her around.

"Cami, you're scaring him," I say, even though I know that she's probably not going to stop. She does and says what she wants, regardless of what anyone does or says to her.

"Me?" She responds. "I don't think so. I'm harmless, Jake."

"Really?" He asks. It's hard to tell if he's really not disconcerted by her or if he is just faking. Either way, he's doing an excellent job.

"Really," she confirms. "In fact, I don't even plan on touching you inappropriately because you're in love with my friend in the back."

"What makes you so sure about that?" Jacob asks.

"You held the door open for her," she answers, "if that's not love, I don't know what is."

"Ohmigod …" There's not much else for me to say besides that. Jacob seems amused as he looks back at me and smiles, so I guess it's not so bad.

"Oh, Teag, don't be embarrassed," she coos, "someone needs to say these things, and you are far too tactful to do it."

"I'll take that as a compliment I guess," I sigh.

"You do whatever you want with it, sweetheart," says Camryn, "it's all yours."

--

"This is your house?" Jacob asks as we roll up the driveway. Camryn doesn't live on or anywhere near the reservation. The houses aren't big enough for her family, which is pretty small. She lives about ten miles off the reservation in Oakhurst, and her house basically has its own mountain. OK, it might be more like a hill, but it's a pretty big hill, and the house isn't much smaller. It's basically a mansion. I remember her telling me all about the rooms and such, but all I can remember is it has seven bedrooms, which I guess is good because she's got four siblings. In case you don't feel like doing the math, that leaves one guest bedroom.

"One of them," Camryn answers. "Normally at this time of the year we've gone to L.A., but my father's on some big huge case there and we have to stay here for a little bit so that the people he's prosecuting don't find us and kill us."

"That's a good idea," Jacob says, "so your father's in L.A.?"

"Yeah, but my mom is here," she answers as we pull up to her four-car garage. I know that, her car and her mother's car are the only ones in there, seeing as all of Camryn's siblings are younger than she just got her license and her first car. When she pushes the button to open the garage door, we're not so pleasantly surprised. Well, at least, I was unpleasantly surprised.

"OHMIGOD! GAVIN LAWLEY IS IN MY GARAGE!" She slams on the brakes and stares straight ahead.

"I don't mean to burst your bubble, Cam," I begin, "but I don't think that he's here to talk to you."

"Well, I can dream can't I?" She asks as Gavin moves out of her spot and she pulls in. "He's so hot." She's right about that. He's looks like he's about to boil over when he sees Jacob sitting in the front seat. He practically sprints to the car and wrenches the passenger door open. "Hey! Watch my car!"

"What the hell are you doing!?" He demands as he pulls Jacob from the car.

"I was about to go to sleep," Jacob answers, "you know, I'm pretty tired. I've been running from you and your cronies all day."

"You wouldn't be running if you had left when I told you to," Gavin reminds him. This is when I get out of the car. I'm kind of tired of all of this. I grab Gavin by the shirt and start dragging him away.

"I just need to have a chat with Gavin," I say to my two other friends. "Cam, could you just bring him inside? I'll be there in a bit."

"I'm staying out here," Jacob states as he crosses his arms in front of his chest, trying to look tough.

"Oh, no you're not," Camryn says as she grabs him by his shirt and drags him across the huge garage to the door that leads to her house. "You're coming inside with me. You look like you're starving." I don't get to hear Jacob's response because I'm now focused on Gavin.

"OK, I really want to know what your problem is," I state, getting right to the point.

"Really?" Gavin asks. "Didn't you hear me when I told you that you're my imprint?"

"Yeah, I heard you, but I'm not so sure that I believe you," I answer, "I mean, comparing Jacob's behavior towards me and yours has allowed me to come across some striking contrasts."

"Teag, I know it's-"

"You have known me for about three years and I have just found out about me being your imprint," I say to him. "Jacob Black has known me for less than twenty-four hours and he wasted no time in telling me."

"He's lying, that's why!" Gavin exclaims. "Honestly, Teagan! Why are you so eager to trust a guy you barely know over me, who, in case you have forgotten, is your best friend!?"

"Why would he lie?" I demand.

"Have you looked at yourself lately?" He demands. "You're gorgeous! I would have done the same thing!"

"I don't think that Jacob would do that," I say to Gavin. "He's in love with someone else. Some girl from Washington who's about to marry a vampire or something. And I really don't think he's lying … well, he's lying about not being in love with her anymore. It's kind of obvious that he is."

"He's just a good actor, that's all!" He's basically screaming, now.

"Well, in case you haven't forgotten, so are you!" I'm screaming right back. "For three years I've followed you around like a little lost puppy! You had to have noticed how I feel about you." Gavin sighs.

"I admit that my course of action probably wasn't the best, in retrospect," he states, "but I didn't want to freak you out. How weird would it have been if I just told you that you're my soul mate the very moment I met you?"

"Jacob did it, it wasn't that weird," I said to him.

"Shut up about what Jacob did!" Gavin orders. "I know exactly what he's doing and I'm not going to let him do it. What's going on here is impossible. There is only one imprint per wolf and one wolf per imprint. You can't belong to both of us."

"So, one of you is lying," I conclude.

"Well, it's not me."

"Your behavior these past three years is not leading me to trust you," I remind him as I start walking towards the door that leads into the main house. "You've either been lying to me for as long as I've known you, or you're lying to me now."

"I'm not proud of lying to you!" He exclaims. "If I had a chance to do it over I would do it completely differently." The tone of his voice has changed now. He sounds like he's in pain. "Can't you feel the difference?"

"That's just the thing," I begin, "it feels the same. Exactly the same. There are no differences." Now he looks really hurt, like I've ripped out his heart and stomped on it.

"You know, if I don't kill him," he begins as he starts leaving the garage, "someone else is going to do it. Are you coming tonight?"

Gavin is in a band. Nothing serious, it's just something he does for fun. He likes music. So, he plays the guitar and sings. Not very well, but it's still fun to watch.

"What time does it start?" I ask. It's hard to be mad at him because I know him so well. If he wasn't upset, he would still be fighting with me. It's when he changes the subject that you know you've gotten to him.

--

"You found out about the werewolf thing, didn't you?" Camryn asks me as I walk into the living room. She and Jacob are sitting on separate chairs.

"You mean you knew about it and you didn't tell me?" I demand.

"I thought you knew," she answers, shrugging. "Silver is part of the pack." Silver is Camryn's younger brother. "And my dad used to be. Of course, Silver's not allowed to run around with them yet because he's too young, but he'll be old enough soon." She shrugs. "I thought you knew about it. I mean, you are part of the tribe. And it's not really something we go shouting on the rooftops, you know. There is a certain amount of secrecy required. Do you really think people would be excited if they found out there were a bunch of teenaged werewolves running around Yosemite?"

"I guess not …" I trail off as I plop down on the couch on which Jacob is sitting.

"That's actually what I wanted to talk to you about," Jacob says as he scoots closer to me. "You know, your father knows. About the wolf thing, I mean. When he talked to me outside your house, he told me that he knew what I was and if I ever came near you again he would kill me. I think he underestimates how hard that is."

"This doesn't make sense," I say as I shake my head. "I mean, he doesn't really like Gavin, but he still lets me hang out with him, and the rest of the tribe, for that matter. If he was so against me being around werewolves, he would have taken a much bigger stand. He wouldn't let me work in a gift shop that is run by the Awahnee Tribe.

But now that I think about it, it really is just Gavin that he doesn't like. And now Jacob.

I almost find myself wanting to go home so that I can get some answers, but almost doesn't count. I'm staying right here. Well, at least for the next hour or so. Gavin's show starts at ten. When I mention the show to them, Camryn, of course, is all for it. Jacob is a bit skeptical.

"Don't you remember?" He asks me. "He and his friends want to kill me."

"I'm going to see if I can keep them from killing you," I inform him. "I mean, if I'm really his imprint, he's supposed to want to do anything to make me happy, right?"

"That's generally how it works, yes," Jacob answers.

"Well, it would make me very happy to see you leave the Yosemite Valley alive," I inform him.

"You want me to leave?" He asks, sounding slightly hurt.

"No, I don't want you to leave," I answer, "but I just … didn't think you'd plan on staying here forever."

"As long as you're here, I'll be here," he answers as he kisses me on the temple.

"As cute as this is," Camryn interrupts, "I'm about to go see a very sexy boy play his guitar. Sadly, I can't watch you two lovebirds anymore. Show him the guest room, Cam? He looks like he's about the same size as my dad, I'll see if I can find something acceptable to wear. He is coming, right?" I look to Jacob, who shrugs.

"I guess," he answers. "It's probably better to walk right into the line of fire than sit here waiting to be ambushed."

Camryn smiles, comes over, and ruffles his hair. "That's what we like to hear." Camryn walks out and Jacob turns his head to look at me.

"I have a question for you," he states as he continues to stare, his eyes are very penetrating.

"I probably won't be able to answer it," I reply, "but I'll give it my best shot."

"Why are the wolves here?"

"What to do you mean?" I sigh, starting to become exasperated once more. Is he saying that the wolves have to have a reason to be here? Well, that would just make things even more interesting, wouldn't it?

"Well, back in La Push," Jacob begins, "the werewolves didn't come about until there was a legitimate threat to their land. That threat was vampires. When there was no threat, there were no wolves, but when the vampires came back, they returned. Or, shall I say the gene returned? It's hard to explain, but the wolves don't phase unless there is a reason to do so. Any ideas about what that might be?"

Are you kidding me?

"I have no idea," I answer as I shake my head. "I mean, I didn't even know about the wolf thing until today. How could you expect me to actually know things about them?"

"You are part of the tribe, aren't you?" He asks. "Aren't there legends? Stories? There has got to be something."

"I don't know …" I answer. "Maybe it's vampires? I would be really surprised, though. People don't randomly disappear from around here … nor do they randomly die."

"But they do get mauled by bears," he supplies. Immediately I know that he is talking about my mother. Is he suggesting that my mother was killed by a vampire?

"That doesn't happen very often, though," I say to him.

"OK, but what about other deaths?" He asks. "Campers get lost, don't they? They fall off cliffs? Drown in rivers and streams?"

"No … not really," I reply. "There aren't really that many deaths in Yosemite, despite what you may think."

"Well, our vampires were 'vegetarians'," Jacob says, putting air quotes around "vegetarians." "They never fed on people, they fed on animals. Though, your vampires might slip up occasionally and eat a person."

"Well, if that's the case, we would never know," I inform him. "Animals die all the time. No one would notice if a few bears died, as long as they weren't going overboard. And stop talking like there are definitely vampires here. You don't know that for sure."

"All I'm saying is there has to be something," Jacob states as he stands up. "And you might want to find out what it is, now that you're in the loop. I'm sure Gavin would know."

"Why do you want to know so badly?" I ask as I get up to follow him. I need to show him where the guest bedroom is, after all.

"I'm just curious," he answers. "I wasn't aware that there were any other wolves besides the Quileutes. I just want to know everything that I can. Knowledge is power and all that." We go up one of the many sets of staircases and take a left. There is the guest bedroom. It's tastefully done in shades of beige and dark brown, and there is a queen sized bed right in the middle of the room. The windows face east and have light curtains so that in the morning the sunlight comes in, but not enough to blind you.

I love waking up in this room. Usually, when I sleep here, this is where I sleep. I don't think that is going to be the case tonight unless something happens. But I'm really not that type of girl. But then again, I have never been propositioned by anyone who is supposed to be my soul mate, so I don't know what would happen in that situation.

"You're staring at that bed pretty hard," Jacob states as he takes my chin in his hand and turns my face so that I have to look at him. "Would you like to climb in? I really wouldn't be upset about skipping this little concert."

My breath catches in my throat when he touches me and my skin feels like it's on fire. I have to resist, though. I promised Gavin I would come. He'll be upset if I don't show.

"No, Jacob," I say as firmly as I can, which isn't really that firm.

"Please. It's Jake," he reminds me. "And in that case, I guess I should shower. I don't even want to tell you how long it's been." But, before he lets me go, he wraps a hand around my waist and pulls me closer to him. The hand that is already placed on my chin lifts my face as his bends to meet mine. When our lips touch it's like there's a spark, only we don't jump back. We embrace it. It just feels right.

I have to be Jacob's imprint. There's no other way to explain this feeling.


	7. Author's Note

An interesting turn of events.

After reading Breaking Dawn, I have decided that I actually hate the Twilight series, mostly because of Stephenie Meyer's inability to do anything even remotel y creative with characters that have such great potential. I had almost all of this story written, but have decided that I am far too unhappy with the ending of Breaking Dawn to just leave it, so, this story is going to take a completely different direction than I previously thought. None of what I have already posted is going to change, so don't worry about that. I'll have the next chapter out soon, because I know it has been a while.

Thank you to all of those who have added my story to their watch list, it is very encouraging. I just hope that you don't hate me at the end. A warning, and I guess a bit of foreshadowing, I would suggest anyone who is happy with Bella and Edward's perfect happy ending not to read, because it's going to suck for the two lovebirds.


End file.
